Learning
Chapter 7
Unit 6 ~ AP Psychology ~ Ms. Justice
BIG IDEAS
How do we learn?
Classical conditioning
 Pavlov’s Experiments
 Extending Pavlov’s Understanding
 Pavlov’s Legacy
Operant conditioning




Skinner’s Experiments
Extending Skinner’s Understanding
Skinner’s Legacy
Contrasting Classical & Operant Conditioning
Learning by observation
 Bandura’s Experiments
 Applications of Observational Learning
1: What are some basic
forms of learning?
What is Learning?
Learning is a relatively permanent change in an
organism’s behavior due to experience.
Learning is more flexible in comparison to the
genetically-programmed behaviors of Chinook
salmon, for example.
How Do We Learn?
We learn by association. Our minds naturally
connect events that occur in sequence.
2000 years ago,
Aristotle suggested
this law of association.
Then, 200 years ago,
Locke and Hume
reiterated this law.
Associative Learning
Learning to associate one stimulus with another.
Toss me
a fish!!
Associative Learning
Learning to associate one stimulus with another.
Associative Learning
Learning to associate a response
with a consequence.
2: What is classical conditioning,
and how did Pavlov’s work
influence behaviorism?
Classical Conditioning
Ideas of classical conditioning
originate from old
philosophical theories.
However, it was the Russian
physiologist Ivan Pavlov who
elucidated classical
conditioning.
His work provided a basis for
later behaviorists like John
Watson.
Pavlov’s Experiments
3: How does a neutral stimulus
become a conditioned stimulus?
Pavlov’s Experiments
Before conditioning:
Food produces salivation .
However, the tone does not.
Food = Unconditioned Stimulus (US)
Salivation = Unconditioned Response (UR)
Tone = neutral stimulus
Pavlov’s Experiments
During conditioning:
The neutral stimulus (tone) and the US (food) are
paired, resulting in salivation (UR).
After conditioning:
The neutral stimulus (now Conditioned Stimulus, CS)
elicits salivation (now Conditioned Response, CR)
Review!
• In Pavlov’s experiment, what is the
UR?
US?
CR?
CS?
Remember, the UR is unlearned, or unconditionally
triggered by the stimulus
The CR is learned, or conditioned by the stimulus
Conditioning & the Bike Bell
Conditioning & The Office
4: In classical conditioning, what
are the processes of acquisition,
extinction, spontaneous
recovery, generalization,
and discrimination?
Acquisition
Acquisition is the initial learning stage in
classical conditioning in which an association
between a neutral stimulus and an
unconditioned stimulus takes place.
1. In most cases, for conditioning to occur, the
neutral stimulus needs to come before the
unconditioned stimulus.
2. The time in between the two stimuli should
be about half a second.
Acquisition
The CS needs to come half a second before the US
for acquisition to occur.
Extinction
When the US (food) does not follow the CS (tone),
CR (salivation) begins to decrease and eventually
causes extinction, the diminishing of a conditioned
response.
Figure 7.5, p. 297
Spontaneous Recovery
After a rest period, an extinguished CR (salivation)
spontaneously recovers, but if the CS (tone) persists
alone, the CR becomes extinct again.
Stimulus Generalization
Tendency to respond to
stimuli similar to the CS is
called generalization.
Pavlov conditioned the
dog’s salivation (CR) by
using miniature vibrators
(CS) on the thigh. When he
subsequently stimulated
other parts of the dog’s
body, salivation dropped.
Stimulus Discrimination
Discrimination is the learned ability to distinguish
between a conditioned stimulus and other stimuli that
do not signal an unconditioned stimulus.
5: Do cognitive processes and
biological constraints affect
classical conditioning?
Extending Pavlov’s Understanding
Pavlov and Watson considered consciousness unfit
for the scientific study of psychology.
However, they underestimated the importance of
cognitive processes
(thoughts, perceptions,
and expectations)
and biological constraints.
Cognitive Processes
Early behaviorists believed that
learned behaviors of various
animals could be reduced to
mindless mechanisms.
However, later behaviorists suggested that
animals learn the predictability of a stimulus,
meaning they learn expectancy or awareness of a
stimulus (Rescorla & Wagner, 1972).
Biological Predispositions
Pavlov and Watson believed that laws of
learning were similar for all animals.
Therefore, a pigeon and a person do not differ
in their learning.
However, behaviorists later
suggested that learning is
constrained by an animal’s
biology.
6: Why is Pavlov’s work
important?
Pavlov’s work provided the basis for
other experiments that demonstrated:
– Classical conditioning is one way that
virtually all organisms learn to adapt to
their environment
– A process such as learning can be studied
objectively
7: What have been some
applications of classical
conditioning?
Applications of Classical Conditioning
1. Former crack cocaine users should avoid
cues (people, places) associated with
previous drug use.
2. Through classical conditioning, a drug (plus
its taste) that affects the immune response
may cause the taste of the drug to invoke the
immune response.
Ader & Cohen, 1985
Applications of Classical Conditioning
Brown Brothers
John Watson used classical
conditioning procedures to
test his theory that human
emotions and behaviors are
merely conditioned
responses.
He conducted experiments on
a 9 month old child named
Albert.
John B. Watson
“Little Albert” Experiment
8: What is operant conditioning,
and how does it differ from
classical conditioning?
Operant & Classical Conditioning
1. Classical conditioning
forms associations
between stimuli (CS
and US).
Operant conditioning,
on the other hand,
forms an association
between behaviors and
the resulting events.
Operant & Classical Conditioning
2. Classical conditioning involves respondent
behavior that occurs as an automatic
response to a certain stimulus.
Operant conditioning involves operant
behavior, a behavior that operates on the
environment, producing rewarding or
punishing stimuli.
–
Actions followed by reinforcers increase;
those followed by punishers decrease.
Skinner’s Experiments
B. F. Skinner’s experiments extend psychologist
Edward Thorndike’s thinking, especially his law of
effect. This law states that rewarded behavior is
likely to occur again.
Yale University Library
Fish was the reward used to entice cats to find their way out of Thorndike’s puzzle box in 1898 .
Operant Chamber
Skinner developed the operant chamber, or
Skinner box, which contains a bar or key that an
animal manipulates to obtain food or water. The food
or water is a reinforcer, an event that strengthens the
behavior it follows.
The bar or key is connected to devices that record the
animal’s response.
Shaping
Shaping is the operant conditioning procedure
in which reinforcers guide behavior towards the
desired target behavior through successive
approximations.
Fred Bavendam/ Peter Arnold, Inc.
Khamis Ramadhan/ Panapress/ Getty Images
A rat shaped to sniff mines. A manatee shaped to discriminate
objects of different shapes, colors and sizes.
9: What are the basic types of
reinforcers?
Types of Reinforcers
A heat lamp
positively
reinforces a
meerkat’s behavior
in the cold.
Table 7.1, p. 307
Primary & Conditioned Reinforcers
1. Primary Reinforcer: An innately reinforcing
stimulus like food (when hungry) or drink
(when thirsty).
2. Conditioned Reinforcer: A learned
reinforcer that gets its reinforcing
power through association with
the primary reinforcer. Money is a
conditioned reinforcer (desire for
money is derived from the desire
for food and other necessities).
Immediate & Delayed Reinforcers
1. Immediate Reinforcer: A reinforcer that
occurs instantly after a behavior. A rat gets
a food pellet for a bar press.
2. Delayed Reinforcer: A reinforcer that is
delayed in time for a certain behavior. A
paycheck that comes at the end of a week.
We may be inclined to engage in small
immediate reinforcers (watching TV) rather
than large delayed reinforcers (getting an A
in a course) which require consistent study.
10: How do different
reinforcement schedules affect
behavior?
Reinforcement Schedules
1. Continuous Reinforcement: Reinforces the
desired response each time it occurs (rarely
occurs in real life).
2. Partial Reinforcement: Reinforces
a response only part of the time.
Though this results in slower
acquisition in the beginning,
it shows greater resistance to
extinction later on.
Ratio Schedules
1. Fixed-ratio schedule: Reinforces a response only
after a specified number of responses. e.g., a free
drink after every 5 purchased at the local coffee
shop.
2. Variable-ratio schedule: Reinforces a response
after an unpredictable number of
responses. This is hard to extinguish
because of the unpredictability.
(e.g., behaviors like gambling, fishing.)
Interval Schedules
1. Fixed-interval schedule: Reinforces a
response only after a specified time
interval has elapsed. (e.g., preparing for
an exam only when the exam draws
close.)
2. Variable-interval schedule:
Reinforces a response at
unpredictable time intervals,
which produces slow, steady
responses. (e.g., pop quiz.)
Schedules of Reinforcement
Figure
7.13,
page 309
11: How does punishment
affect behavior?
Punishment
Punishment is an event that decreases the
behavior it follows.
Punishment
Although there may be some justification for occasional
punishment (Larzelaere & Baumrind, 2002), it usually
leads to negative effects:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Results in unwanted fears.
Conveys no information to the organism.
Justifies pain to others.
Causes unwanted behaviors to reappear
in its absence.
5. Causes aggression towards the agent.
6. Causes one unwanted behavior to
appear in place of another.
12: Do cognitive processes and
biological constraints affect
operant conditioning?
Cognition & Operant Conditioning
Evidence of cognitive processes
during operant learning comes from
rats during a maze exploration in
which they navigate the maze
without an obvious reward.
Rats seem to develop cognitive maps,
or mental representations, of the
layout of the maze (environment).
Latent Learning
Such cognitive maps are based on latent
learning, which becomes apparent only when
there is an incentive to demonstrate it.
Intrinsic Motivation
Intrinsic Motivation: The desire to perform a behavior
for its own sake.
Extrinsic Motivation: The desire to perform a behavior
due to promised rewards or threats of punishments.
Skinner’s Legacy
Falk/ Photo Researchers, Inc
.
Skinner argued that behaviors were shaped by
external influences instead of inner thoughts and
feelings. Critics argued that Skinner dehumanized
people by neglecting their free will.
Skinner’s reply to his
critics:
External consequences
already haphazardly
control people’s behavior.
Why not administer those
consequences toward
human betterment?
13: How might operant
conditioning principles be
applied at school, at work, and
at home?
Applications of Operant Conditioning
Skinner introduced the concept of teaching
machines that shape learning in small steps and
provide reinforcements for correct rewards.
LWA-JDL/ Corbis
Skinner would likely
approve of today’s
interactive student
software, web-based
learning, and online
testing.
In School
Applications of Operant Conditioning
Reinforcers affect productivity. Many companies
now allow employees to share profits and
participate in company ownership.
Rewards are most likely
to increase productivity
if the desired
performance has been
well-defined and is
achievable.
At work
Applications of Operant Conditioning
In children, reinforcing good
behavior increases the
occurrence of these
behaviors.
Ignoring unwanted behavior
decreases their occurrence.
At Home
Operant vs. Classical Conditioning
Table 7.4, page 316
14: What is observational
learning, and how is it enabled
by mirror neurons?
Learning by Observation
©Herb Terrace
The monkey on the
right imitates the
monkey on the left in
touching the pictures in
a certain order to obtain
a reward.
© Herb Terrace
Higher animals,
especially humans,
learn through observing
and imitating others.
Reprinted with permission from the American
Association for the Advancement of Science,
Subiaul et al., Science 305: 407-410 (2004)
© 2004 AAAS.
Mirror Neurons
Neuroscientists discovered mirror neurons in
the brains of animals and humans that are active
during observational learning.
Learning by observation
begins early in life. This
14-month-old child
imitates the adult on TV
in pulling a toy apart.
Meltzoff, A.N. (1998). Imitation of televised models by infants.
Child Development, 59 1221-1229. Photos Courtesy of A.N. Meltzoff and M. Hanuk.
Imitation Onset
Bandura's Bobo doll
study (1961) indicated
that individuals
(children) learn
through imitating
others who receive
rewards and
punishments.
Courtesy of Albert Bandura, Stanford University
Bandura's Experiments
Applications of Observational
Learning
Unfortunately,
Bandura’s studies
show that antisocial
models (family,
neighborhood or TV)
may have antisocial
effects.
15: What is the impact of
prosocial modeling and of
antisocial modeling?
Positive Observational Learning
Bob Daemmrich/ The Image Works
Fortunately, prosocial (positive, helpful) models
may have prosocial effects.
Gentile et al., (2004)
shows that children in
elementary school
who are exposed to
violent television,
videos, and video
games express
increased aggression.
Ron Chapple/ Taxi/ Getty Images
Television and Observational
Learning
Modeling Violence
Children modeling after pro wrestlers
Glassman/ The Image Works
Bob Daemmrich/ The Image Works
Research shows that viewing media violence
leads to an increased expression of aggression.